Cardio Express

I agree with some of the comments above regarding customer service. Once you sign up they will just quote you the contract even if common sense and and being reasonable should prevail. First they make it a hassle to cancel. You have to come in person to sign a form or if that is not convenient you can mail a certified letter (because that is more convenient). In today’s day and age where I can sign up for EFT, cancel my insurance and close on a house all via mail, email and fax it’s unbelievable to me that I have to come sign a form in person to cancel a gym membership. Second, you have to give 30 day notice after the current month you are in. So in my case I cancelled in Feb but I had to also pay my March dues. That’s fine but in my case on ³⁄₁₅ they also took out my annual dues. Seriously. I’ve already given them a signed cancellation form 45 days earlier and they still take out $ 46 fee for the next years dues? They quoted me the contract that this is their policy. What a rip off. They are penny wise and pound foolish to do this type of thing which will only ensure I am never a customer again. A smart policy would be to let the person leave feeling not ripped off so in the future they might come back. People rejoin gyms all of the time. Let the buyer beware!

I was pleasantly surprised with this Cardio after hearing negative things about this place. It reminds me of a smaller East Hartford version of Cardio, however it’s still decent size. The free weight area honestly is good. It has three free bench and two free squat racks which is better than some of the Cardios in the area. Dumbbells go up to 75 so that may not be enough for a lot of people. The gym was clean. There are better gyms out there for sure but this Cardio is solid.

I don’t understand all the negative reviews about this particular Cardio Express or for any Cardio Express location for that matter. I originally planned to join only the Vernon location for a change of scenery, as I was getting bored and uninspired at my apartment gym. But after exploring several of their other gyms (Wethersfield I, Manchester, East Hartford), I decided it was worth it to maintain my multi-​club membership because each location is pretty unique, special and close to home or some point of interest. Also because I really do thrive on a change of scenery :) In any case, the staff is always super friendly, equipment is plentiful and in excellent condition, and the facilities are clean. You get all that for a very reasonable membership fee.

Thee Cardio Express in Vernon is fine. Not great, but it gets the job done, and they finally finished a lot of the installs a few months back. It is a good mix of generally average people of varying age and fitness, so not too many people should feel uncomfortable working out here. They also have tanning rooms, which seem to be kept pretty clean, and a lot of cardio equipment. My main complaint would be this location tends to play the same music all the time, and it’s typically that pseudo pop crap that only preteens or 20 something girls listen to… the music at the Manchester location is slightly more tolerable. Either way, I bring my running headphones with me, because nothing is less motivating to staying on the treadmill then being annoyed.
Wishlist… I should be able to store a credit card or load money onto my account, and pay for water or protein shakes with my member card, that would be nice. I don’t like always having to carry around my wallet if I’m going to want to get a water later.

Horrible customer service!
I have been there for a while now and decided to try the training. While my trainer is great and a lovely person, be careful of the contract. It seems nice that you can sign up for 3 months at a time but if you don’t cancel after the 2^nd month it will roll over month by month. My trainer never mentioned it and when I called upset because I didn’t have the money to pay this they had NO empathy or sympathy and simply quoted the contract. They were complete jerks about it. I take some responsibility in not reading fine print, but you would hope that people would make it clear and be forthright when signing up, or at least give you a heads up when that time comes where you need to make a decision. Also, even though by law they don’t have to work with me, they could of at least tried to be a little kinder or worked with me in some way.

This gym is very large with a LOT of equipment, so I was impressed. I always had an enjoyable experience going in and working on cardio machines, but I gave this place 3 stars because I did their «7 Day Free Trial Membership.» As I made clear I wanted to do the free trial, the woman gave me a tour around the facilities and tried aggressively to get me to sign up for an actual membership. I literally had to say «no» close to 10 times before she finally gave up. It was extremely annoying and sad, so… if you want to do the free 7 day trial… BE PREPARED AND DON’T CAVE!!! You can do it, just stick to your guns!!!

I lucked out with a fabulous trainer who respects my old body and accommodates my medical condition. She keeps me working out as hard as I can with encouragement, but also knows when to stop. The new location offers way better space, including the locker rooms and parking. I’m happy with the range of equipment. I’m there at a quieter time of day, do I can’t comment on accessibility of machines.

True to its name, this gym has a lot of cardio equipment. Treadmills, ellipticals and bikes galore– something is bound to be available, even during the busy hours. Unfortunately no stair masters or rowing machines.
The free weight area is decent and the weight machines are plentiful and well maintained.
The stretching/​ab room is alright– although it can get a bit crowded and I wish they would get some mats and Bosu balls. They do have stability balls and medicine balls available.
Spin classes are phenomenal, with a decent schedule and enough instructors to rotate through so you can find one or two with the teaching style you like. There is supposedly yoga on the weekends, but I haven’t gone to any classes.
The locker rooms are clean enough, no complaints there. The staff are friendly enough; some are more personable than others. Open 24 hours during the week, but closes at 5pm on the weekends which is unfortunate.
While this gym doesn’t have absolutely everything I would like to use, it has most of it. And at $ 20/​month (for the X-​zone which includes unlimited classes and free guests on the weekends, also tanning which I have not used) I can’t complain. I would recommend this gym to anyone looking for a general gym membership.

There’s a reason this place only costs 10 dollars a month. It’s because they are terrible. Once you sign up they couldn’t care less about you. It’s not that clean, it is ALWAYS super packed, and the employees are not great. I’d rather pay more and go to a better facility. Will never return to cardio express.

I’d rather be obese than give any money to this gym. The staff are rude and lazy. They don’t know their own gym policies and won’t honor trial periods listed online.
The air inside this gym feels like a hot stale swamp. I swear I’m going to catch some disease. Everything feels dirty and covered in other people’s sweat.
Save yourself the trouble and go for a run outside. It’s free and you won’t have to deal with some bitchy uneducated employee.

No thanks. Management is drama-​filled and takes it out on their employees, who in return tell customers about it (or worse– fight in front of customers!) Lockers took foreverrrr to update and they make it super hard to get out of your contract. Very fake friendly, and employees are forced to harass customers to donate to the MS Bike Tour– made me avoid the gym that month. I’d rather pay 20 dollars more to go to Anytime Fitness– they are ACTUALLY 24 hours (doesn’t close early on weekends but still profess to be 24 hours like Cardio Express does), and the staff is PROFESSIONAL and does not harass you. Plus, even though smaller, it is less crowded and they have such a large variety of equipment, pieces that Cardio Express doesn’t have despite its size! I will never return to this gym, not even worth the petty $ 10/​month.

Great new equipment and ample machines during rush hour. New location offers a much better experience. Pleasant staff and relaxed atmosphere. Weekend hours only till 5pm though. Locker rooms taking forever to be remodeled. 1 water fountain sufficient, could use another but encourages to bring your own. I left Cardio Express for LA Fitness for a year, regretted it and now I’m back.